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Original poster

Braces - pay privately for it now or start age 13 on NHS? Confused!

15 replies

MotherDragon · 15/02/2019 18:02

Took DS to orthodontist today who said he has a Grade 4 overbite which in theory means he qualifies for NHS but as he is 10yrs he's too old. Apparently on NHS you can only do it before 10 yrs. He would qualify for NHS when all his adult teeth are in around 13 years. Ortho recommends correct the overbite now as best medically speaking but we'd have to pay. Either way he'll still need fixed braces later. So I am confused - has anyone heard of this 10 year age rule? And secondly, is it better to correct the overbite when they are still growing or wait?

OP posts:

Bayleaf25 · 15/02/2019 18:16

Not heard that rule before. DD started her NHS treatment when she was 11.5 and DS (15) has just been seen now. They both had to wait until all adult teeth were in. DD is having her overbite corrected as well.

Noopa · 15/02/2019 18:31

Never heard of that. Dd had block braces from age 11 as she had a big overbite. After that she had a fixed brace. The orthodontic work was dependant on her adult teeth coming through and luckily this happened quite early for dd.

wishingforalotterywin · 15/02/2019 23:28

Got a quote?

We are paying for both privately but the twin block is much less money than the train tracks

Also if paying for twin blocks ask whether it might impact NHS eligibility for the train tracks or not (eg if problem is it less severe after part one treatment)

Original poster

MotherDragon · 21/02/2019 17:04

Thanks. We can get the work done on NHS but not until his adult teeth are in. I think girls get their adult teeth sooner but boys not until 12 or 13. I don't mind waiting if that's the best thing to do. Just don't understand the age thing. If I'd have known I would have gone to the ortho before he was 10.

And the orthodontist did point out that if we correct the overbite now he won't qualify for NHS later if he needs a brace. As he said, if you want NHS the worse his teeth are the better!

OP posts:

wishingforalotterywin · 21/02/2019 20:34

That's interesting to hear about boys v girls - my DD started with twin blocks at 11 (lost baby teeth fairly early)

You also have to factor in teenage self consciousness and I was keen to get on with it whilst I still have a bit of influence.

But the cost of twin blocks then private train track braces is eye watering so if you'd have to pay for both you def need a full quote upfront before committing

but tbh all I cared about was finding the optimum way to get good face shape/bite whilst still growing (as for the rest of life!) even if it means sacrificing nice hols etc

Maybe someone will come on here who's had them on nhs? There are a few twin block threads I found really helpful when we first had them

could pay for a second opinion if you still can't decide?

CloudPop · 21/02/2019 20:38

Do you mean at 10 years he is not old enough? Never heard of the rule about being too old at 10. The rule that was explained to us was that my daughter would have to wait another couple of years to get the treatment on the NHS so we paid to have her start her treatment when she was just 12. Advantage is she will be all done when she is 14 going on 15, otherwise would have still been going when she was knocking on 17. Expensive though.

wishingforalotterywin · 21/02/2019 20:39

Ps we were told good to have twin blocks during a growth spurt as then have them in for fewer months

I wonder what age would be too late to correct an overbite?

CloudPop · 21/02/2019 20:39

And I should say her teeth are looking great, together with the improvement in her general jaw and mouth shape. It's been pricey but I'm glad we've done it.

Believability · 21/02/2019 20:56

DD has had to wait until she’s 13 as she hasn’t had enough teeth out to start earlier. We are hoping to start in the next couple of months when she turns 13 but if they want to hold off much longer I’ll consider private. We paid for our older child child as they didn’t qualify for NHS treatment. I am not worried about the treatment going on until 16/17 as I don’t think that the kids are that bothered by braces

swingofthings · 22/02/2019 06:30

DD had an over it but not enough to qualify for NHS. We waited a year, went again, seen by another orthodontist and he concluded that she did meet the criteria bseexon how it was impacting on her speech.

She was 12 or 13 when she got them and she was one of the youngest in her class and indeed boys tended to have them later. Never heard it was better to have earlier on the opposite, seems advice around us is that later is better.

AJPTaylor · 22/02/2019 06:42

In your situation wait for the nhs treatment.
My dd started with twin blocks at 10 and is now moving to fixed braces on nhs at just over 11 but She Has lost all her baby teeth.
The advice you had sounds confusing. Was it an nhs consultation today? Can you get a second opinion?

blueskiesovertheforest · 22/02/2019 06:55

I don't think that's true at all about boys and girls - we have a similar issue (though in DD's case grade 3 atm which doesn't qualify for funding) with DD who is 13 and still has 8 baby teeth!
We could pay to start treatment now but the orthodontist has advised waiting til she has more adult teeth to tee if they get worse, which will save us thousands as the treatment would be mostly funded.
However it may just stay the same, in which case we'll still end up paying starting at age 15 or 16, which is harder on her as loads of 13-15 year olds have braces but not many 16-18 year olds ...

It is a dilemma... We've got another appointment in June and will decide then I think.

I lost my last baby teeth at 17 (back ones luckily so not visibly gappy except when laughing) and am female...

jcq17 · 22/02/2019 06:59

That information is totally false, I'm an ortho nurse. Google IOTN guidelines and that will fill you in. There's lots of factors to consider.

celtiethree · 22/02/2019 07:43

My DS is 12, he had a grade 4 overbite. He qualified for treatment but the treatment is for both blocks and braces, as it was viewed as one treatment. Blocks were fitted a few months before his twelfth birthday and have worked really well - he was going through a growth spurt so 6 months to correct the overbite and also expand the pallet, fixed braces will be fitted in the next month. He had one baby tooth left when the blocks were fitted but that has now come out.

I have 2 older DC both had braces but no blocks. The blocks were harder to get used to and impact speech a lot more - I’d get this done as early as possible as a self conscious teen would find it a lot harder (just my view).

A pp mentioned change to the face shape of her DC. It’s made a positive difference to my DS, the difference is remarkable.

wineandsunshine · 22/02/2019 21:47

My son was in a similar position with the overbite, we had a private quote at aged 11 for £3500 and then the NHS dentist offered a temporary retainer until his baby teeth had come out. Fast forward to yesterday and he's now 13 - has two baby teeth left and had his fixed brace put on.

I would say try and stay with one dentist if you can as consistency of care will help with treatment. We had comments from the current orthodontist that he shouldn't have had the temporary retainer, however I don't regret paying for that as his teeth were so bad.

Good luck op

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